Choice Words

Now I want to write about a book I love: Choice Words by Peter H. Johnston. It is a non-fiction book that moves back and forth between my bedside bookshelf and the bookshelf by my desk at school. It is a book directed at teachers that reminds me how the words we use with our students carry so much communication beyond their basic meaning. Our words if well chosen can inspire and support our students. If not so well chosen, our words can undermine our students and our goals for them. He also talks about the questions teachers should ask and then listen carefully to the answers. This book is drawn from the author's experiences in classrooms with students and teachers, and their words echo throughout.

He begins the book quoting a poem by Herb Warren: Sticks and Stones May Break My Bones. The poem closes:

Sticks and stones may break the bones
But leave the spirit whole,
But simple words can break the heart
Or silence crush the soul.

Johnston's book illustrates the truth of these words.